LOCAL & GENERAL

Horowhenua Chronicle, 28 August 1916, Page 2

LOCAL & GENERAL

From iigures published in the Government Gazette, we note that the railways revenues of New Zealand continue to expand and the expenditure to diminish. In the period of twelve weeks from Ist April. 1910, to 22nd •July, the revenue was over one and a half million pounds sterling (£1 ~">Cf), ■ 108 fos lid) 'and the expenditure £879.892 10s 7d. The receipts for the twelve weeks were £190.000 in excess of those for the corresponding period of Ifllo. and the diminution )in expenditure was represented by over £35,000.

All traces of the floods have disappeared from the Shannon-Makerna Road, and traffic now is under nomal conditions.

Heavy mortality amongst lambs ha.s occurred in the Kairauga district, through the .sodden nature of the pastures, but with the present warmer weather the trouble should be over. .\ new shoot is now apparent in the fields, ami an early spring its a"-«ured.

The N.Z. Fanners' Distributing Company reports a very successful run through the Waiigniiui-Waverley district. Many representative settlers ha»e taken up shares in the company, and also in the Dominion Farmers' Institute Company. At Woodvillo, on Friday evening, Mr 11. J. Richards, organizer of the New Zealand Fanners' Union for Wellington Province, addressed a meeting of farmers on the subject of the Union's usefulness. At the conclusion of the address, the names of thirty-two farmers were handed ill as the nucleus of a new branch. There will be another meeting on Thursday next, by which time the canvass of the district will he completed.

•An Australian visitor to Now Zealand had a unique experience, at Trentham a lew days ago. He was visiting the camp to' see his brother, who had been ill in hospftal, and, oil leaving, had refreshments at one of the shops adjacent to the camp. Ho tendered a sovereign in payment when, to his astonishment, the young lady behind the counter refused to accept it. A sovereign must ho a rara avis in Trentham iu these days when bank notes held sway.

Because Russians who were wcting as firemen oil the Corinthic develop.-d what others regarded as healthy appetites, 18 British firemen absented themselves without leave at Auckland, and when the captain went along to the police station to lay an information lie found hi* 18 firemen there already complaining that they could not sail 011 the vessel unless separated from the Russians. The men were charged at Court,, and their story was that tho Russians ato so much and so rapidly that the others did not get their'proper share oT meat. One of the Russians had been severely assaulted. The ch'ef steward siid this was the first time he bad heard any complaint of the food. Th;* Magistrate said he was -aware P.'tsMans were heavy eaters, hut at the same time ho thought a lot of the trouble was due to drink. The men wore ordered to be placed on hoard, oxicept one British fireman, who was sentenced to a month's hard labour for ask:imltiiia "Russian.

The increase in the freight of live stock tf> Argentina from Great Britain is mounting up. With the increased freight and the added war surcharge it now costs .£26 5s to send a head of cattle to Argentina, or an increase of L 0 guineas per head above the present war rate. This increased charge amount' to practically 9 per cent of the value of the animal, taking the average declared value ol all the cattle shipped to Argentina and Uruguay in 1!!1~. Tin- sheep increase amounts to £2 7s 3d per bead, and this is even more exorbitant than the cattle, compared with the value of the ■animals carried, for taking all the slieep exported to Argentina and Uruguay last year, the new freightage represents 14 per cent of their value.

Hegarding the case of the deserter who is supposed to have come from the Carterton district 'Mr Allen. Minister of Defence, say* the Government did not feel justified in publishing tlf(> man's name, pending the receipt of details liotu Home, which have been asked.ior. Steps were being taken, however, to deal with the matter as soon as information is available.

ft has come to the knowledge of the Otago Daily Times that the first applicant at the Dunedin Post Office for War Loan certificates wa.s a Chinese market gardener, who invested the whole of his savings. amounting to £40. in this way. "The reason why the agreement was not carried out was because 1 would not bribe a member of the Nfeitive Laud Board," said a witness in the course of tlie hearing of a civil action refuting to the transfer of land in the Auckland Supreme Court last- week. The witness added that the member referred to was dead, and although he did not. like to make any accusation under such circumstances, he felt bounß to do so in the interests of the case, and to account for a certain course of procedure adopted..

An interesting and apparently not very widely-known point in connection witii the war pensions scheme cropped up on Tuesday during the sitting ol AVmt Pensions Board (sav.s the Southland Times). A soldier in evidence cited the fact that he was the sole support of his aged parents. Tn reply the returned warrior was informed that all dependents have a claim to a pension on their own account, irrespective of any .granted to the breadwinners. A striking example was furnished la lor in the day when a returned man with :•

wife 'and three children was allotted a pension of CI a week, his wife 10s J>er week, and each child 7s <k! or a total of C 2 Pis fid for the family, whereas the maximum pension payable to a disabled man is 35s per week.

A down-tbe-line publican lias a good, story to tell. O* the evening prior to the Grand iNational Hurdles there was a big crowd of stock buyers; all "hard heads," who reckoned tliey could "pick the race in one." The discussion be-

came animated. cheque books were produced. and as the reult of a dozeu or so side wagers the publican was called upon a.s stake holder. Excitement ran high, until next day, when the result came through. Then the publican had tho pleasure of handing back each

•'know-all" his own cheque. Between the lot. of them they didn't puk a placed horse!

.Miss Eggleton, who has been on the teaching .staff of tho Boys' Training Farm int Wereroa, Ims Ween appointed to take charge of To Oranga 'Homo, Christchurch.

Three notices in terms of .statute are published to-day by the Horowltenua Comity Council. The Ivuku 'Water S.i.pplv Extension District, the Koputaini.l Stream Special Bating District, and the Makahika Bridge Special Bating 'District are the areas concerned.

The champion butter-fat Ayrshire cow of 'New Zealand. Mr. F. lilills's Alexandra of AVaipawa (her record being .1-1,3-18.61b. of milk and 591.101b. of fat), is probably the best Ayshire cow of her age in. the world. Her record, however, does not approach that of the world's champion. Anchenbrain Brown Kate, which is credited with a record of 23,02511). of milk and f)17.f>0T5." of fat in 365 days.

A Swiss investigator states that cheese is valuable not only for its contents of proteids and carbohydrates, but for the heneficient bacteria lound in it. Another interesting and important assertion is that persons who make cheese a considerable part of their regular diet are very resisTS-iit to many intestinal diseases, such as dysentery and typhus fever. According to Dr. "Burri. the daily meat ration in the Swiss army has already been partly replaced bv cheese with excellent results.

A message from Mnsbaiio states: — The Minister for Agriculture reconi y made the following (statement on the butter question: "J propose to take possession of all butter as it conies into cold stores, both first and second grade, and from all stores. I purpose selling the butter for State requirements at proclaimed rates. Any blotter exported beyond the State and realizing a surplus will be dealt with as follows: The output of the whole of the butter factories will be furnished by returns from the factories and the surplus will be paid on the (same pro rata on fhe output of each factory. This means that whatever I make on the seTTing of this butter in Melbourne will be divided among all factories."

Acocrding to official statistics the number of hides imported into the United States now averages about a million a month, as compared with about (530.000 a month a year ago. and about ."340,000 monihly two years ago. This increase over last year, but more especially over tTie normal period of two years ago. of nearly 100 per cent, demonstrates the greatly enlarged production of such kinds of heavy leather as sole, belting, harness, etc.. into which these hides are con verted. There were 1.058,898 hides 'Imported during January and 7.101.178 in the seven months ending with 31st Janu-

ary. In the corresponding (seven months a year ago tlie imports wore 4.409.73(5, and two years ag03.801,0T7.

The production and consumption of margarine incroa»sed materially dining 1915 in Denmark. Tn 1914 there were manufactured :in the oonntny aibout

510.000.0001b of margarine, while in 1915 the production increased to 110,000.001b -75 per cent of which was made by 25 factories. The imports were 5,000.0001b, while the exports were only 200.0001b. The increase in the consumption of margarine is attributed to the high cost of butter in 1915.—Commerce Reports.

Some 300 men and women took' part in a cattle drive near Ballinasloe. Co. Galwav. on the night of June 2'lst, and cleared cattle off a large ranch, the property of a Scottish landowner who grazes 4000 acre* on the banks of tinRiver Shannon. The people claim that the land should be divided among them for meadowing and cropping. The police came into collision with lbcrowd hut were powerless to prevent the drive. Late at night many of the drivers were arrested in their beds and have been returned to trial to the next assizes. This ip tlie second drive in a fortnight on the same estate.